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3.79 AVERAGE
3.79 AVERAGE
3.5 ster denk ik. of toch 4 misschien
ik vond het een ingewikkeld boek. ook omdat het natuurlijk een nogal beladen onderwerp is dus is het een beetje gek om het boek wel leuk te vinden maar dat is ook het goeie eraan. maar ik vond het ook ingewikkeld vanwege het taalgebruik, wat af en toe best ouderwets is aangezien het boek uit 1955 komt, vooral aan het begin en richting het einde was dit zo dus het zou goed kunnen dat ik dingen af en toe gewoon niet zo goed had begrepen
ik vond het een ingewikkeld boek. ook omdat het natuurlijk een nogal beladen onderwerp is dus is het een beetje gek om het boek wel leuk te vinden maar dat is ook het goeie eraan. maar ik vond het ook ingewikkeld vanwege het taalgebruik, wat af en toe best ouderwets is aangezien het boek uit 1955 komt, vooral aan het begin en richting het einde was dit zo dus het zou goed kunnen dat ik dingen af en toe gewoon niet zo goed had begrepen
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
4.5/5
I found the Jeremy Irons narration really great.
I was particularly moved by the rare glimpses of sincerity (such as “You see, she had absolutely nowhere else to go.”) skillfully juxtaposed to HH's excuses and justifications (such as the whole nymphet nonsense). Indeed, as one gets used to the self-centered passages that dominate the novel, the occasional depictions of true remorse like the one below are all the more powerful, bringing out an unexpected humanity of HH:
> Alas, I was unable to transcend the simple human fact that whatever spiritual solace I might find, whatever lithophanic eternities might be provided for me, nothing could make my Lolita forget the foul lust I had inflicted upon her. Unless it can be proven to me – to me as I am now, today, with my heart and my beard, and my putrefaction – that in the infinite run it does not matter a jot that a North American girl-child named Dolores Haze had been deprived of her childhood by a maniac, unless this can be proven (and if it can, then life is a joke), I see nothing for the treatment of my misery but the melancholy and very local palliative of articulate art.
HH admits that despite trying to convince himself and the reader that he truly loved Dolores, the fact is that he never really knew her. He was profoundly disinterested with anything but his own pleasure. The passage above reveals that, despite all his previous laughable claims to the contrary (“Sensitive gentlewoman of the jury, I was not even her first lover.”), he is aware of the harm he has done. This understanding and confession remind me of his humanity despite all his faults. I guess it is interesting that even in the midst of this confession of guilt and empathy for his victim, HH again ends up focusing on himself as he is preoccupied with the treatment of his own misery.
I found the Jeremy Irons narration really great.
I was particularly moved by the rare glimpses of sincerity (such as “You see, she had absolutely nowhere else to go.”) skillfully juxtaposed to HH's excuses and justifications (such as the whole nymphet nonsense). Indeed, as one gets used to the self-centered passages that dominate the novel, the occasional depictions of true remorse like the one below are all the more powerful, bringing out an unexpected humanity of HH:
> Alas, I was unable to transcend the simple human fact that whatever spiritual solace I might find, whatever lithophanic eternities might be provided for me, nothing could make my Lolita forget the foul lust I had inflicted upon her. Unless it can be proven to me – to me as I am now, today, with my heart and my beard, and my putrefaction – that in the infinite run it does not matter a jot that a North American girl-child named Dolores Haze had been deprived of her childhood by a maniac, unless this can be proven (and if it can, then life is a joke), I see nothing for the treatment of my misery but the melancholy and very local palliative of articulate art.
HH admits that despite trying to convince himself and the reader that he truly loved Dolores, the fact is that he never really knew her. He was profoundly disinterested with anything but his own pleasure. The passage above reveals that, despite all his previous laughable claims to the contrary (“Sensitive gentlewoman of the jury, I was not even her first lover.”), he is aware of the harm he has done. This understanding and confession remind me of his humanity despite all his faults. I guess it is interesting that even in the midst of this confession of guilt and empathy for his victim, HH again ends up focusing on himself as he is preoccupied with the treatment of his own misery.
I have been meaning to read this book for years and I finally do only to discover it is TOTALLY different than I expected. Not that I really knew what to expect, but still....
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Gun violence, Pedophilia
Moderate: Sexual content, Death of parent, Murder
I’m glad it’s over. I felt like I *should* read this because it’s talked about a lot and controversial.
I started it ages ago but had to stop because the main character’s point of view was just too disturbing. Started and stopped a few times before finally finishing.
It was interesting to see how he attempted to rationalize and justify his behavior to the reader and himself.
free (thank goodness) on audible.
I started it ages ago but had to stop because the main character’s point of view was just too disturbing. Started and stopped a few times before finally finishing.
It was interesting to see how he attempted to rationalize and justify his behavior to the reader and himself.
free (thank goodness) on audible.
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Loveable characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
this book stunned me even more the second time. a masterpiece.
There's no real reason I can find that can lead to me liking this book at all except for the biggest, most obvious, and unavoidable reason - it's unbelievably, astoundingly well written. Nabokov had one hell of a mind and an enviable talent for languages/story telling. While my reason for not giving it five stars should also be the reason I do give it five - the fact that so many passages of H's perverted utterings had me sick to my stomach, a testament to the writer's power - I simply cannot give it five because, for all it's tragic beauty, I use this term vaguely, it still leaves a lingering feeling of 'je ne sais quoi' (forgive the trite French) within my psyche that I don't quite enjoy its now being there. A 'love story' (I testify Humbert Humbert loved himself and his delusions above all else) this may be, but it's also dark, demented, deranged, and more fucked than any shit I have read to date in its profound dealing with broken and warped human interactions.
In the end the book had me asking simply, why? Why did Nabokov saturate himself in the delusions and ideations of such a horrific character (not that monsters in literature are uncommon, but his is particularly monstrous), and why pedophilia? Maybe it's a testament that murder isn't a theme that shocks in literature so he descended into depths much more revolting to garner attention for his literary chops. Any way you slice it, I admire his skills, but I will actively be turning down any future book concerning topics such as this, it would only be another glimpse into the depraved mind I never want to see again.
In the end the book had me asking simply, why? Why did Nabokov saturate himself in the delusions and ideations of such a horrific character (not that monsters in literature are uncommon, but his is particularly monstrous), and why pedophilia? Maybe it's a testament that murder isn't a theme that shocks in literature so he descended into depths much more revolting to garner attention for his literary chops. Any way you slice it, I admire his skills, but I will actively be turning down any future book concerning topics such as this, it would only be another glimpse into the depraved mind I never want to see again.
challenging
dark
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes